Drunken Shenanigans
by Winter's She-Wolf
Summary: The Stark sisters discover that they're happiest together while drunk.


**Drunken Shenanigans**

Gendry got the call from _Sevenstrings_ the weekend before Sansa and Willas' wedding.

"Look man, I don't wanna call the cops or anything, but you need to come get your girl," Tom said.

"Arya's at the bar?" he asked. "What's going on?"

"We had to stop her from fighting some guy who grabbed her friend's ass. We threw him out, but she's already drank more than she weighs and she's still getting belligerent."

That morning, Arya headed out to spend the day at the tamest bachelorette party Gendry had ever heard of. She was only going because as the maid of honor and sister of the bride, she had little choice. It was supposed to be a soothing day at the spa with Sansa, the other bridesmaids, Mrs. Stark, and the Tyrell women. That was to be followed by an evening of dancing for the bride and her bridesmaids at the upscale night club, _Red Keep_.

After suffering through massages, pedicures, and face creams, Arya should have been at the club by now. Gendry decided Arya must have bailed and let her frustrations out at _Sevenstrings_. With all the fighting between her and Sansa over every detail of her maid of honor duties, she must've had enough.

"She and her friend are starting to get outta hand," Tom said. "Just come pick her up before they do something I won't be able to look the other way for."

Gendry cursed under his breath. "I'll be there in a sec." Before hanging up, he caught himself. _Friend?_

Arya made friends easily with all sorts, so it could be anybody. Sassy Wylla Manderly, Mycah, quiet Shireen, that Goth girl known only as the waif, Ned Dayne… He just hoped it wasn't Elia Sand. The first time she and Arya had made their way into _Sevenstrings_, they were underage with fake IDs and massive attitudes. That had been years ago and they were both legal now, but people still talked of the fuss they put up and how Arya broke Lem's nose when he tried to escort her out. Back then, only the interference of her dad's friend Harwin stopped Lem from pressing charges. The last thing Arya needed was another scene like that, and right before her sister's wedding too.

"Wait, Tom," Gendry said. "Which friend?"

"I dunno," he said. "Some tall chick with red hair."

_Tall with red hair? _Gendry couldn't speak for a minute. There was no way… "Is she…" He wasn't sure how to describe her. "…uptight and courteous?"

Tom barked out a harsh laugh. "There ain't nothin' courteous about putting Taylor Swift on repeat in the jukebox and singing along like this is some damn karaoke joint."

Almost laughing, Gendry wondered how Arya was responding to that. He always knew the sisters might end up killing each other before this wedding had a chance to happen. He just didn't think it would be in a seedy bar or set to Taylor Swift music.

"I'll be there in a sec," he repeated.

In the weeks leading up to Sansa's wedding, Gendry had the misfortune of becoming a confidant to all the disagreements and growing tensions between the Stark sisters.

"She only did it because Mom made her," Arya announced as soon as she bust into their apartment with only a quick kiss for a greeting. "Sansa doesn't want me as a maid of honor any more than I want to be one."

"So you told her no?" Gendry asked, taking a seat on the couch.

He already knew she hadn't, but he still held out hope.

"Don't be stupid." She dropped down beside him on the couch and rested her head on his shoulder as he flipped on the football game. "If I did that, Sansa would win. She'd tell Mom how nice she was to ask me only to be refused by that mean, spiteful Arya. Then she'd get to be the good one and I'd be the bad one like always. And I'd never hear the end of it.

"And I'll never hear the end of how much you hate every minute of it," Gendry said.

"Oh, shut up."

Arya sat up and gave his shoulder a shove that didn't move him an inch. When she tried shoving him again, he slipped a hand under her arm and tickled her. Arya hooted with laughter, even as she swatted at him. They ended up wrestling each other to the ground where their lips joined the fray.

If only changing the subject with Arya's sister was as easy.

"I wanted to make her feel included," Sansa explained one day when Gendry ran into her at Starbucks. "I couldn't get married without my sister in the wedding party and it wouldn't look right if someone else was maid of honor instead of her. But why can't she just be a normal person who actually likes trying on dresses and talking about colors and picking venues?"

"You're up," Gendry said, gesturing ahead of her to the waiting barista.

"Oh, thanks."

She turned a brilliant smile on the cashier and ordered a slice of lemon loaf with a tall, skinny mocha. Gendry couldn't help snickering at how well she matched the barista in chipperness and pleasantries. But as soon as they had finished ordering, she continued on about Arya.

"Did she tell you about her flower girl idea?" Sansa asked.

She had. Apparently little Ollie Tyrell didn't feel comfortable in the elaborate dress she was being fitted for, and Arya thought she would be happier in one of the tomboy flower girl outfits she'd seen online.

But Sansa didn't wait for his response. "She wants to dress Garlan's little girl in a pantsuit. A _pantsuit_! Seriously, the ideas she gets sometimes…" She brushed her long auburn hair over her shoulder. "Hey, maybe you could talk to her about it. Help her see that she doesn't have to be so… difficult."

"That'd go over well." Gendry shook his head. "Just tell her you'll handle the details yourself and all she has to do is show up at the wedding."

Sansa smiled at him indulgently. "Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't think so. She would just tell Mom I'm shutting her out. Then I would be painted as the snotty older sister or the evil bridezilla. Maybe you could just-"

"Grande Americano!" the barista called.

"That's me," Gendry said. "See you around."

With that he quickly moved forward to retrieve the coffee and made his escape. But that wasn't the last time the sisters used him as a sounding board for their problems with each other. If they weren't arguing over the style and color of the dress Arya would have to wear they were having it out over what Arya would say in her maid of honor speech.

Of course everything would come to a head at the bachelorette party, which Sansa had given over to Margaery Tyrell to arrange.

Before heading out to get them, Gendry made a quick call to Sansa's fiancé. Gendry had had enough of playing ref for them on his own.

Willas was skeptical when Gendry told him where his bride was. "Sansa and I drove by that place once to pick Arya up. She thought the building should be condemned. I can't even imagine her walking into a place like that."

"I don't know any other tall women with red hair who'd be with Arya right now – or singing..." He searched his mind for a Swift song. "'Tear Drops on My Guitar.'"

There was a pause on the other end of the line.

"I'll meet you there," Willas said, at last.

Since _Sevenstrings_ was only down the street from their apartment, Gendry got there first. The place wasn't near so bad as to be condemned, he thought as he climbed the steps to the door. Sure the bricks were faded and the left stair rail hadn't been replaced since Notch crashed into it a year back and the neon harp that hung over the door flickered, but Gendry had seen worse bars around the city.

"She's the bad one," Sansa was saying too loudly when Gendry walked in.

She stood in front of the bar where Anguy was working. Her arm was wrapped around Arya's shoulders and she leaned on her sister's small form like she would a crutch. Arya too was leaning into Sansa, her arm looped around her sister's waist.

"Listen," Sansa insisted. "You have to _listen_. Now she's the bad one and I'm the good one. Are you _listening_? But tonight,_ I_ get to be the bad one too."

"Yeah, you told me," Anguy said. "About five times now. You're still not getting anything else to drink. We cut you off. Now sit down and eat some chips till your ride gets here."

"But you have to listen-"

"You're both cut off." The bartender saw Gendry sidling up beside Arya. "Thank the gods."

"Don't be stupid, Anguy!" Arya shouted. "You're lucky we're here, spending money in this shitty dive."

"Yeah," Sansa agreed, squeezing Arya's shoulder. "_Shitty_... _Dive_."

Gendry's mouth dropped open and Arya looked up at her. Sansa covered her mouth and giggled.

Soon Arya had recovered and nodded. "Yeah, shitty dive. You're ruining her night. This is the first time she's ever had a good time in her life and you're ruining it."

"I have fun all the time," Sansa insisted. "Just… not like this."

"Liar." Arya turned back to the bartender. "I told her she'd have more fun coming with me than staying at that stupid _Red Keep_. You're making me a liar too. Either plug the jukebox back in or give Sansa that damn strawberry lemongrass martini she ordered. And don't give me that bullshit about not serving that here."

Anguy just looked at Gendry. "You taking them home or not?"

The girls nearly fell over when they saw him leaning against the bar beside them.

"Gendry!" Keeping one arm around Sansa, Arya hooked the other around him. "How'd you know we were here? I love you. Did you know that?"

He pressed a quick kiss on her upturned face. "Love you too. Now, c'mon. Let's get outta here."

"No," the sisters said in unison.

"Course that'd be something you finally agree on."

"Bartender," a calm voice called out from behind them. "Can we have four club sodas?"

"Willas!" Sansa smiled for him, but her face burned as red as her hair. "_Hello_! How _are_ you? I didn't know you'd be stopping by."

Gendry couldn't help laughing at the slurring formality of her tone.

"I didn't think I'd find you here either," Willas said.

"Will coke work?" Anguy asked.

Willas nodded. He pulled out one of the bar-stools for Sansa with the hand that wasn't leaning on a cane. She took the seat without any of her usual grace.

"I heard you were singing earlier," Willas said, taking the stool beside hers. "Why have I never heard you sing?"

Arya had taken her sister's lead and let Gendry help her onto another bar-stool. "You can hear her now if Tom and Anguy would let us put the music back on. She's _such_ a good singer. She is. You need to hear her. You really do."

"And you should see her dance, Gendry," Sansa said. "She's _such_ a good dance. I can't believe I never knew."

"You know what you should do?" Arya asked after Anguy set their cokes in front of them. "I know what you need to do. At the wedding reception, you need to sing. For Willas. If you sing, I'll let you read my speech before I give it."

"That is _such_ a good idea," Sansa said. "You have so many good ideas. I don't have to read your speech. It's going to be so good."

"Only because it's going to be about you. And Willas. I love you both. Do you know that? And Gendry too."

Without warning, Sansa's face screwed up and she was crying.

"I don't think I could've chosen a better maid of honor," Sansa sobbed. Nearly falling off her stool, she reached for Arya, tucked her little sister's head beneath her chin, and held her tight.

Gendry tried not to snort out his soda. It was too bad they'd probably go back to arguing once they sobered up.


End file.
